Bahamas: BS-EX

Marine Conservation Institute, recognizing the need for more and better ocean protection, is leading a major initiative to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030. Launched in 2017, the Global Ocean Refuge System is an innovative strategy to incentivize decision makers to establish protected areas that safeguard marine life and promote opportunities for sustainable tourism. Learn more about the program at globaloceanrefuge.org

The Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park was established by the Commonwealth of The Bahamas in 1958 under the National Trust Act to “protect the native flora and fauna, natural communities, and ecosystems that represent the biodiversity of the Park.”

Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park protects healthy mangrove forests, seagrass meadows, diverse coral reefs, and other undisturbed areas. The park serves as critical habitat for threatened species such as the hawksbill turtle, Nassau grouper, queen conch and an array of nesting seabirds.

Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park is an important site for the transport and settlement of the Caribbean spiny lobster larvae – a highly valued source of food and revenue with declining populations worldwide. It provides a critical reserve for lobsters to grow to their maximum size in shallow and deepwater reefs without fishing disturbance. The park similarly helps Nassau grouper conservation in the Bahamas: elevated grouper biomass within the park is predicted to have a spillover effect into outside areas, which benefits local fisheries and larval replenishment.

The Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park is likely an important source of conch larvae. The queen conch is a cultural symbol of the Bahamas that supports subsistence and local fisheries throughout the country. Its populations are severely depleted throughout its range, and the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park is one of the few places left in the Bahamas where densities of conch above 50 per hectare occur consistently. These healthy conditions are also reflected by its thriving seabird colonies.

Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park is home to many species of nesting seabirds, earning it an Important Bird Area designation from BirdLife International. Its cliffs host a large colony of white-tailed tropicbirds and yellow warblers nest in its mangrove wetlands. The largest known Audubon’s shearwater colony remaining in the West Indies is protected in the park as well.

Among the best-studied aspects of marine biodiversity in the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park are the effects of marine reserve protection on reef fish populations: research has confirmed higher species richness within the park. There also appears to be lower abundances of sea urchin in the park, which likely indicates higher abundances of predatory fishes.

The Global Ocean Refuge System (GLORES) is a Marine Conservation Institute initiative working to build a global network of effective marine protected areas to save ocean wildlife. In 2018, GLORES grew to include 10 blue parks around the world.

The waters of Exuma Cays have been managed as a no-take marine fishery reserve since 1986, allowing populations of commercially important species such as queen conch, Nassau grouper and spiny lobster to thrive. Sea turtles swim throughout coral reefs teeming with marine life.

Exuma Cays located about 65 miles (105 kilometers) southeast of the Bahamian capital Nassau, was the first land and sea park in the world. It is also the oldest national park in The Bahamas.

Though the park is mostly water, the land is a vital refuge for a small mammal called the hutia, several rare and endangered iguana species and marine birds such as terns and the long-tailed tropicbird that nest high in the bluffs.

The park supports local fishermen as well as sportfishing and other lucrative tourist industries in the Exumas. The park’s pristine reefs, uninhabited islands, miles of white beaches and the clearest water in the world, attract visitors from around the world.